Singer known as Katie Rox returns to Red Deer
Performing in Red Deer this month will be something of a homecoming for a talented singer named Katie, who has a long history of last names.
The last time she sang at The Vat was eight years ago. She was a Red Deer College music student then named Katie Biever who performed with a cover band.
This time, she’ll sing her own folk/roots songs at The Vat on Monday, June 30, as a solo artist named Katie Rox.
Katie plans to bring her guitar, her friends — the rock band The Matinees — and a ton of professional experience.
Much of this was accrued while the petite blonde performed as Katie B., the lead singer of Vancouver’s break-out band Jakalope.
She recently ended her four-year tenure with the industrial pop band that was formed in 2003 after Katie met producer Dave “Rave” Ogilvie (who worked with David Bowie, Skinny Puppy, 9-Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson).
With Jakalope, Katie was signed to a record label, had several popular singles, air-play on MuchMusic, a hand-full of awards nominations and tours to Japan.
It was a fun ride, said Katie. But at some point, she realized she was growing in another musical direction from Jakalope — a more acoustic direction.
The 26-year-old who grew up on an Airdrie-area farm with “horses, cows, a cat, ducks,” decided to be true to herself — she left the band in the spring of 2007 and went solo.
Becoming an indie artist has been illuminating, to say the least, said a chuckling Katie, who had to book her own tour through Saskatchewan, B.C. and Alberta.
But she’s enjoyed the casual flexibility of recording her first solo album of roots music in her acoustically excellent closet. (“My mother told me, ‘well if your don’t like how it sounds you can always buy yourself some more clothes,’ ” she recalled with a giggle.)
Katie’s album High Standards was released through iTunes, and fans can also order hard copies from her website, ktrox.com.
Sales are going good, said the singer — “although, when you’re licking all the stamps and envelopes yourself and putting it in the mail, it seems like a lot.”
Her music, more folk than country, has a down-to-earth vibe.
“You can’t tie me down is a common thread running through my songs,” said Katie, who credits her mom as well as the late RDC instructor Keith Mann for “always instilling in me a sense that I could do whatever I wanted to.”
The performer revealed her Katie Rox stage moniker is really a nickname she earned in college. Going to RDC “was a really good time,” Katie recalled.
“I loved it. It was such a small program that a lot of my best friends are still people I met while in college.”
She’s excited that some former classmates will be at The Vat to cheer her on, as well as relatives from Airdrie and her boyfriend’s relatives from Innisfail.
“I’m really looking forward to it, although it will also be kind of weird because it’s been so many years since I’ve been there.”
Contact Lana Michelin at lmichelin@reddeeradvocate.com
Marquee
What: Katie Rox, with The Matinees.
When: Monday, June 30. Doors open at 8 p.m., show at 9:30 p.m.
Where: The Vat, Red Deer.
Tickets: There is a $5 cover charge.
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